Transmigration: Reverse Exploitation, the System Works for Me

If Consort Jin is not as loyal to Consort Hua as in the original story, then for the sake of her future plans, she will have no choice but to eliminate Consort Jin first.

However, the outcome was still good, or rather, the timing of Consort Hua's pregnancy was excellent, as the two were in their "honeymoon period." Coupled with external factors, their relationship progressed rapidly, and they became extremely close.

This is something Xi Qiao is very happy to see.

Although the palace intrigue system revealed a halo of "exceptionally intelligent," she did not want to equip Consort Hua with that attribute.

Consort Hua already has a top-tier family background, and her exceptional intelligence might not be a good thing for her and Yu Ying'er, such as the possibility of her taking away their child!

Others may not know, but she knew all too well that Consort Hua was carrying a princess.

A concubine from an excellent family, who has no feelings for the emperor and is extremely intelligent, would definitely have strong desires for the supreme position.

Since she can't give birth to a son herself, she's bound to try and take one.

Of the Emperor's current offspring, the Third Prince is considered useless and was adopted by Empress Chun Yuan, whom neither the Nian family nor Consort Hua approves of.

The Fourth Prince is quite clever, but his birth mother is of lowly birth and he was disliked by the Emperor from birth. Moreover, he is already of age to remember things, so the Nian family and Consort Hua would certainly not want such a prince.

The Fifth Prince was always ignored by the Emperor, and besides, he had his own mother by his side.

That leaves only the Sixth Prince.

Although her birth mother, Yu Ying'er, was originally a palace maid, she was still the daughter of an official family from the Banner of Bondservants and was even granted the title of Consort.

In particular, Xiao Liu was fed a brain-boosting pill by Xi Qiao. He is still a tiny little thing and it's not obvious yet, but as he grows up, he will surely show extraordinary intelligence.

Given that the prince was of decent birth, lacked maternal support, and was intelligent, neither Consort Hua nor the Nian family would be foolish enough to know which one to choose.

In order to completely turn the Sixth Prince into a member of the Nian family, Consort Hua might very well take action against Yu Ying'er.

Therefore, Consort Hua could sever all ties with the emperor and only care about the Nian family, but she must not be too clever.

Consort Hua, who is not very smart but is eager for a high position, the Nian family, who needs a prince, and Consort Zhuang, who only loves wealth and has no interest in power, are a perfect match!

However, the Empress is ruthless and Zhen Huan is cunning. With Consort Hua's current intelligence, she certainly can't outsmart them. She needs someone who can assist her from the sidelines, and Consort Jin is a perfect fit.

Consort Hua, unaware of her thoughts, waved her hand dismissively, "It's alright. This matter is a bit complicated. An Lingrong can't be allowed to get into trouble for now, otherwise I wouldn't have helped her deal with Zhen Huan. However, this Zhen Huan is quite capable; she actually managed to trace it back to me."

Xi Qiao forced a smile. "Your Majesty may not know this, but after you and the other ladies left Peach Blossom Village, Jianqiu, the Empress's maid, went to visit Zhen Huan. I think Your Majesty probably played a significant role in this matter."

"Hmph!" Consort Hua snorted coldly. "I knew it! That old woman, the Empress, is truly annoying! Sooner or later, I'll teach her a lesson!"

"Your Majesty, please calm down," Xi Qiao said, offering only half-hearted words of comfort. "The Empress is doing this simply to provoke Zhen Huan into targeting Your Majesty. Right now, only you and Zhen Huan are pregnant in the palace. No matter who wins or loses between you and Zhen Huan, the Empress will remain unscathed."

Consort Hua looked at Xi Qiao with suspicion and asked tentatively, "From what you're saying, you have a way to shift this blame onto the Empress? To let the Empress and Zhen Huan fight it out?"

Xi Qiao nodded with a smile, "Before Zhen Huan's pregnancy was revealed today, the Empress had looked at Zhen Huan's lower abdomen many times. Later, I checked and found that Zhen Huan's menstrual flow is usually stable and should arrive at the beginning of the month, but it has been delayed this month."

"Furthermore, I have also discovered that Consort Xia—no, I should say Commoner Xia—has the Empress's spies around her. After Commoner Xia received the messages from you and Consort Jin, the Empress must have found out as well."

"Therefore, I believe that although we worked together to push this matter forward, the Empress must have also done a lot of work behind the scenes."

Consort Hua was somewhat shocked. She had observed the Empress quite a bit on the day Xia Shuren accused Zhen Huan, so how come she hadn't noticed that the Empress had looked at Zhen Huan's lower abdomen?

Sure enough, she was still too slow to realize it.

Then she became excited again and said eagerly, "Then I will have someone deliver these two messages to Zhen Huan. That old woman, the Empress, wants the child in Zhen Huan's womb. I want to see whether Zhen Huan will hate me more or the Empress more after she finds out."

Xi Qiao was silent for a moment, but still had to say something to hurt Consort Hua, "Your Majesty, I think that given Zhen Huan's current situation, even if she knows what the Empress has done, she will not turn against the Empress in the short term."

Consort Hua's smile faltered. Oh right, she had forgotten. Zhen Yuandao had been stripped of his official rank, and the Zhen family was now just ordinary commoners. Zhen Huan, with her temperament, would never offend the Empress at this time.

Zhen Huan was only a concubine; even after giving birth to a prince and being promoted two ranks, she would only reach the rank of Noble Lady, which meant she was not capable of raising a child.

Since the child must be given away, it must be in exchange for the greatest benefit, just like the Empress Dowager and Empress Xiaoyiren back then.

Consort Hua revealed a mocking smile, "That old hag, the Empress Dowager, is the Empress's aunt. Zhen Huan's scheme may not succeed."

If Zhen Huan wants to replicate the Empress Dowager's feat from back then, she has to see if the Empress Dowager is willing!

But the thought that the Empress Dowager would be disgusted if she knew Zhen Huan's plans made her happy again.

Consort Hua looked at Xi Qiao with a mischievous grin, "Sigh, why don't we help Zhen Huan spread the word and let someone tell that old hag, the Empress Dowager, about her thoughts? I guarantee there will be a good show to watch!"

Thinking of that scene, Xi Qiao couldn't help but laugh. "Your Majesty, although your method is very satisfying, what if the Empress Dowager agrees? If she were to remove the mother and keep the child, Zhen Huan's child would fall into the Empress's hands without any worries."

"If it were just a princess, it wouldn't matter, but what if it were a prince? Even if the imperial register isn't changed, being raised under the Empress's care makes him practically a legitimate son!"

It's alright if the princess is registered under the Empress's name. Perhaps she can be used as a shield for Consort Hua's princess when it's necessary to pacify Mongolia in the future. The problem is if it's a prince, then he will be putting pressure on the sixth prince.

It was already enough that the Third Prince, who had been adopted by Empress Chun Yuan, was above the Sixth Prince. Xi Qiao did not want to see a prince younger than the Sixth Prince climb over him.

Although the idea of ​​leaving the child while the mother leaves is very appealing to Xi Qiao.

Consort Hua immediately gave up on the idea, saying, "Never mind then."

She wanted to give her child the best of everything, and naturally didn't want to see anyone putting pressure on her child.

She then looked at Xi Qiao with a puzzled expression, "Since exposing the Empress's true colors doesn't work, what do you mean?"

Xi Qiao smiled and said, "I think the Empress has done a lot of evil over the years. Not to mention anything else, just the matter of the Joyful Fragrance, you are not the only victim."

Consort Hua had a sudden thought and remembered someone: Consort Jing!

"That's right, it's Consort Jing. Although I don't know what His Majesty's intention was in bringing Consort Jing out today."

"However, in my humble opinion, His Majesty may be thinking of using Consort Jing to check and balance the harem."

“Your Majesty, think about the timing of the Emperor bestowing the rank, treatment, and allowances upon the concubines. You had just pointed out the Empress’s desire to adopt Zhen Huan’s child, and the Emperor issued this decree shortly afterward.”

"Among these—"

Xi Qiao's smile was meaningful. "It seems that Consort Jing benefited from Consort Zhuang's favor, but in my opinion, Consort Zhuang is the one who benefited. She is just a target used by the Emperor to cover up his true thoughts."

Consort Hua suddenly realized: "The Emperor does not want the Empress to have a son!"

Xi Qiao bowed: "Your Majesty is absolutely right, but Consort Jing may not have thought of this. Therefore, now is a good time for you to win her over. Although you and Consort Jing have had disagreements, you have also gone through hardships together. With the child as bait, it is unlikely that Consort Jing will refuse."